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Proteins in bones
Proteins from dinosaur fossils are used by InGen as a source for the genetic code. The protein code can give a glimpse of what the DNA code looked like. In the novels the subject is only briefly touched upon, and in the films it is never directly mentioned. In both media, DNA in Amber is the main source of genetic material; proteins were only "backup". At the time that the novel was written, the presence of proteins in fossils was scientifically controversial. For a long time most scientists believed that fossils had lost all of its biological material. This view only began to change in 2007 after soft-tissue vessels and proteins were discovered in a T. rex bone.Schweitzer MH, Wittmeyer JL, Horner JR, Toporski JK, Soft-Tissue Vessels and Cellular Preservation in Tyrannosaurus rex, Science, Vol. 307 no. 5717, 1952-1955. DOI: 10.1126/science.1108397 Scientific controversy For a long time most scientists believed that fossils had lost all of its biological material during the . In 1997 scientists DeSalle and Lindley wrote the book How To Build A Dinosaur: Because bones are porous, water seeps through them, leaching out the organic content and filling the spaces with mineral material. The trickling water carries atoms of silicon, nitrogen, and carbon in the original material. The process is unimaginably slow, taking thousands of years to be completed; the replacement of organic by inorganic material proceeds almost an atom at a time... What used to be bone has become, quite literally, stone - a stone in the shape of the dinosaur bone it once was. ... all the organic material has been replaced by minerals.DeSalle R, Lindley D, The Science Of Jurassic Park And The Lost World Or, How To Build A Dinosaur, , 1997, page 8-9. under construction However, this claim was disproven in 2007 when Mary Higby Schweitzer found soft tissues and collagen proteins in the bone of a'' T. rex''.Schweitzer and team (2007). Analyses of Soft Tissue from Tyrannosaurus rex Suggest the Presence of Protein Further studies in 2008 revealed soft tissues and collagen in the hadrosaur Brachylophosaurus.Schweitzer and team (2008). Biomolecular Characterization and Protein Sequences of the Campanian hadrosaur B. canadensis These reports were controversial, but further study supports the hypothesis that these proteins are endogenous Schweitzer et al (2011). Dinosaur Peptides Suggest Mechanisms of Protein Survival, PLOS ONE.. Prognathodon was a mosasaur that lived 70 mya in Belgium. Lindgren and his team analysed the creature's exceptionally preserved humerus (IRSNB 1624) for proteins and DNA. They wanted to make sure the biomolecules were not contamination. They used multiple techniques and worked exceptionally sterile. Separate lab coats were worn at each experiment. They found relatively large quantities of fibrous matter and located type I collagen.Lindgren J, Uvdal P, Engdahl A, Lee AH, Alwmark C, et al. (2011) Microspectroscopic Evidence of Cretaceous Bone Proteins. PLoS ONE 6(4): e19445. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0019445 In 2013, scientists discovered proteins in embryonic fossils of the dinosaur Lufengosaurus in China. This is the oldest record of unfossilized organic material in a terrestrial vertebrate.Reisz et al (2013). Embryology of Early Jurassic dinosaur from China with evidence of preserved organic remains Jurassic Park media John Hammond had started a laboratory called "Medical Biologic Services" in Salt Lake to extract the proteins from dinosaur bones. List of discovered proteins from dinosaur fossils Tyrannosaurus rex Name: Amino Acid sequence:P0C2W2.2, ncbi database 1 gatgapgiag apgfpgarga pgpqgpsgap gpkxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx 61 xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx 121 xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx 181 xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx 241 xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxgv qgppgpqgpr 301 xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx 361 xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx 421 xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxgs agppgatgfp 481 gaagrxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx 541 xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx xgvvglpgqr Name: Collagen, type I, alpha 2P0C2W4.1, ncbi database Amino Acid sequence: 1 glpgesgavg pagpigsr Name: P0C2W3.1, ncbi database Amino Acid sequence: 1 glvgapglrg lpgk Name: Collagen, type I, alpha 2P86290.1, ncbi database Amino Acid sequence: 1 gsngepgsag ppgpaglrgl pgesgavgpa gppgsr Name: P86289.1, ncbi database Amino Acid sequence: 1 gatgapgiag apgfpgargp sgpqgpsgap gpkgvqgppg pqgprgltgp igppgpagap 61 gdkgeagpsg ppgptgargs agppgatgfp gaagrgetgp agpagppgpa gar Sources Category:Science of Jurassic Park